Gerard Butler Will Save The Presidency in First Olympus Has Fallen Trailer

I’m actually kind of surprise that Antoine Fuqua’s “Olympus Has Fallen”, one of two major studio “Die Hard in the White House” movies scheduled for this year, is the first one to release a trailer. We’ve seen absolutely nothing from the film since it went into production last year, with Roland Emmerich’s competing film “White House Down” getting all the press attention. Of course, that movie stars current Hot Guy Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx as the black President, and this one stars Gerard Butler, so, you know…

Anyways, here’s the first trailer for “Olympus Has Fallen”. I have actually read both scripts for both “Die Hard in the White House” movies, and honestly, “White House Down” reads better (it’s also way funnier). But I gotta admit, this trailer for “Olympus Has Fallen” ain’t half bad, surprisingly shoddy looking CGI notwithstanding…

When the White House (Secret Service Code: “Olympus”) is captured by a terrorist mastermind and the President is kidnapped, disgraced former Presidential guard Mike Banning finds himself trapped within the building. As our national security team scrambles to respond, they are forced to rely on Banning’s inside knowledge to help retake the White House, save the President, and avert an even bigger disaster.

Watch: Gerard Butler Tries To Save The White House (And His Career) In Trailer For 'Olympus Has Fallen'

After "Machine Gun Preacher," "Playing For Keeps" and "Chasing Mavericks" (and we'll just go ahead an presume the omnibus comedy "Movie 43" is going to tank hard this weekend) Gerard Butler is in desperate need of a hit. Why on Earth he signed on to the cheaper, ripoff version of Roland Emmerich and Channing Tatum's "White House Down" is a question best left to his agent we guess, but FilmDistrict and Millenium are making sure theirs gets into theaters first. But judging by the new trailer for "Olympus Has Fallen," we'll be just fine waiting a few more months.

Laughably serious, Butler stars as the (sort of) disgraced Secret Service agent Mike Banning, who finds himself caught in the middle of an invasion by the guys from "Red Dawn" (or something) and then does his best to "Die Hard" the situation. With wheezy, tired one liners all over the place, and some pretty boilerplate action beats, this isn't too far away from feeling like a straight-to-DVD release. The only reason it seems like something slightly more is the presence of folks like I'll-Star-In-Anything Morgan Freeman, Aaron Eckhart, Angela Bassett, Robert Forster, Ashely Judd....oh wait, why isn't this straight-to-DVD again? (And yes, the timing of this trailer coming one day after the inauguration is either genius or tasteless. Maybe both...)

TRAILER: Gerard Butler returns with Olympus Has Fallen. But is he really that good an actor?

Ever since Gerard Butler botched the Irish accent in the cinematic toothache that was PS I Love You, I've found it increasingly hard to take him seriously. Maybe it's just me but even when speaking with his own Scottish lilt, he sounds like he's putting on an accent. While many would jump to his defence when considering the likes of 300 or Rain of Fire, he's gone down in our estimation of late.

If you turn a blind eye to the recent Playing for Keeps, perhaps Butler will redeem himself with the forthcoming Olympus Has Fallen. It seems like an interesting story - after all, who doesn't love a good President flick - but even two seconds into the trailer, his over the top Americanised 'Mr President; five minutes Sir' sounds utterly contrived. What is it about Butler that I find so irksome? Is he really that good an actor to have worked his way up the slipper rungs of the Hollywood ladder? I'm not quite sure.

TRAILER: Gerard Butler returns with Olympus Has Fallen. But is he really that good an actor?

Here, Butler stars as an ex-Secret Service agent who finds himself trapped in the White House during a terrorist attack. Having failed to save the life of the President's wife at the movie's outset, thus resulting in his expulsion from the service, when terrorists take Aaron Eckhart's President hostage, it's Butler's chance to save the day.

Despite a few cheesy Independence Day style lines like 'With all due respect, I'm the only hope you've got' and the fact that they've hired Morgan - I only-play-figures-of-authority - Freeman to play the acting President, Olympus Has Fallen does look like decent rainy day, Maltesers and popcorn viewing. What's more, it's from the director of Training Day, which we reckon can only be a good thing.

One of two "Die Hard but in the White House" films coming out in the first half of the year, Olympus Has Fallen is the one that does not involve Channing Tatum saving President Jamie Foxx. THAT'S White House Down. This is the one where dishonored former secret service guy Gerard Butler saves America, while murdering its dialect, by rescuing President Aaron Eckhart and grumbling stock phrases into his Bluetooth. It's also the one that comes out a few months earlier, so it's the first to present us with the radical concept of a lone hero disrupting his sit-up regimen to save the Commander in Chief. Here's the trailer:

If Morgan Freeman's ascent to President is somehow building up to the events of Deep Impact, and White House Down similarly finds a way to end with a natural segue into Armageddon, then please disregard everything negative I've ever said about these films.